


Double bluff

by ironbulls



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: AU, Angst, But only a little angst because I'm a pissbaby, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Martial Arts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-14
Updated: 2016-07-20
Packaged: 2018-07-24 01:47:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7488555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ironbulls/pseuds/ironbulls
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>'As Lance stood grinning at his parents and the gathering of curious relatives, he tried to remember a time he’d fucked up this badly in his love life. Of course, he’d had….incidents with the girls at school before, being a little too forward and ending up with a black eye was probably the highlight, but this? This was definitely his worst idea to date. </p><p>“Mum, dad! Uh, everyone else…” He grabbed the sweaty hand beside him, feeling it clench a little too hard, “This is my new boyfriend. His name is Keith.”'</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is fake dating ever a viable plan: no  
> Am I gonna write it anyway? : FUCK YEAH I AM
> 
> This somehow turned into a martial arts AU I'm not even sorry, I don't know my plans for this yet but I'll try & update regularly, & there ~might~ be NSFW. At some point. Maybe ;3c My twitter is @halamshirals if you wanna ask me anything or check for updates or be my frond ?!

“If they make us do as many push ups as last time I’m quitting, Lance. I’m serious…I couldn’t raise my arms above my head for 3 days after last week.” Pidge scowled at the memory, trailing behind as they made their way to their martial arts class. 

Since they’d all met in an after school club, Pidge, Hunk and Lance had started spending more and more time talking, mainly through online games, so the fact Pidge was a couple of years younger never seemed to matter. It was after they’d been talking for a few months that Lance invited Pidge along to Taekwondo, who worked his way quick to a green belt, and through peer pressure Hunk eventually joined them, still only yellow belt.

“I agree, I’m pretty sure I pulled a muscle in my butt last time. Didn’t even know you had muscles there.” What Hunk lacked in experience, he made up for in strength. Even Shiro, a junior instructor who competed nationally, had trouble holding pads when Hunk was punching. Ignoring their complaints, Lance stretched while they walked, getting ready to train. He was blue belt now…his exam was coming up, and there was no way he’d fail like last time. That thought made him grit his teeth. They walked in, bowing and flicking their shoes onto the growing pile in the corner; and Hunk and Pidge only sighed knowingly when Lance made a beeline for the training dummies, and some familiar faces. “What’s up, Shiro!….Keith.”

“Lance! Nice to see you.” Shiro’s kind face lifted in a smile as he waved. He always seemed too nice to be a Taekwondo expert, but seeing him in matches was like watching a different person. It was…a little unnerving, actually, but he was a great guy. His shorter and less friendly training partner was a different story. Keith had joined a couple of years ago, the same time as Lance, coincidentally, and they’d been slightly reluctant partners as they worked their way up the ranks together. That is, until Lance made a stupid mistake, which now meant Keith had a red belt wrapped around his middle, and Lance was stuck with blue.

“-so we’ll be practicing sparring today. Alright?” He’d spaced out while he was sulking, and now Shiro was looking at him expectantly. Shit.

“O-oh yeah! Sounds good to me!” He grinned unconvincingly, and Shiro nodded before walking off to speak with the other instructors. When Lance tried to join his friends again, however, a hand grabbed his forearm and pulled him back, Keith tilting his head and glaring through his fringe. He really should get that cut. 

“You really weren’t listening, were you? You’re working with me today. Sparring.”

“I would have expected you to be training with Shiro, you’re a big shot now, aren’t you?” Lance huffed, regretting the petty response, especially when Keith smirked. His stomach tightened at the sight, but that was surely just annoyance at the smug expression.

“This is for you, dumbass. Training for your exam? Or don’t you ever want to get this red belt?” Just as Lance was about to open his mouth to retort, Keith held up his hand, “I’m helping you out here, Lance. Save it.”

So he swallowed his words, and they all lined up to stretch and warm up. Pidge was shy around people they didn’t know, so the idea of working with partners was a little scary, but when Shiro saw them trying to pair up with Hunk he laughed and immediately shook his head.

“Sorry Pidge, I’m not sure even you could take on a guy twice your height. I’ve been meaning to talk to you though.” After pairing Hunk with an older man that had a large mustache and always made strange battle cries instead of the usual grunts, Shiro set about teaching Pidge something else, self-defense stuff by the looks of it. Lance smiled.

“Lance?”

“Oh, right.” He dropped into a sparring position, and prepared himself as Keith did the same. “And just so you know, Keith, I won’t go easy on you! We’re rivals after all.” 

 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

After 20 minutes or so, Shiro called for a break, and Lance could have kissed him for it. Panting and red faced, he jogged over to his water and grabbed it before slouching against a wall and taking a long drink. Pidge and Hunk flopped either side of him, although Lance noticed they weren’t sweating quite as much.

“Shiro sure is a good teacher! I feel like I could take on the whole soccer team and win after that.” Pidge laughed happily, sipping water. Everyone knew about the troubles and bullying that had happened before they’d met, but they rarely spoke about it. The confidence that Shiro had seemed to inspire was refreshing.

“Hey Lance, has your mum stopped nagging you yet?” Hunk changed the subject, cracking his neck, “You seemed pretty annoyed yesterday.”

Lance winced. He loved his mum, and he’d always been close to her (something his friends were quick to tease about, but hey, it wasn't about to change) but recently she’d been prying into his life a little too much for his liking. Her most recent obsession was his love life. Or rather, lack of. 

“She just won’t stop. Yesterday I even told her I was dating someone to stop the nagging and dating coach sessions she was trying to give me, but that’s made it worse.” Dragging a hand down his face, he took another drink. “Now she keeps asking questions. And now if she found out I lied just to get her off my back…well, it’s not good news for me, anyway.”

“I mean…maybe it doesn’t have to be a lie?” Hunk suggested, shrugging. Always making it seem so simple.

“Hunk, none of the girls in school would date me- and believe me, I’ve tested that theory. Why they don't like me beats me, but…for now, I’m stuck being single. I guess I'll just suck it up and get a lecture once she finds out." It was getting close to the end of their break; Lance saw Shiro getting to his feet and stretching, and took a gulp of water. Hell, he’d need it for another half an hour sparring with-

“What about Keith?” Lance choked on the water still in his mouth, spluttering and trying to look at Hunk in disbelief at the same time (it didn’t really work). Hunk shrugged again, “I never said you had to actually date somebody, your mum just has to believe it.”

“Hunk’s right.” Pidge pushed their glasses up their nose with a decisive nod, “He’d actually be a pretty good option.”

“Have you two hit your heads while you were training or something? I….what makes you think Keith is the best option here? We’re rivals, remember!”

“I think the rivals thing is one sided, buddy.” Hunk patted him on the shoulder, “Besides, I thought you got on pretty well when you first started here? You always used to talk about him at school, and he used to-”

“Nope, don’t remember, didn’t happen.”

“Anyway, I think you’ll find I can guarantee that Keith will agree to this.” Pidge’s smile was a little unsettling…it was a very good super villain grin, and Lance made a note not to get on their bad side anytime soon. “You’re not allowed to use your training here for anything that’s not self-defense, right? But we all know how many fights Keith gets into at school. I don't think Shiro or the others would be too happy to hear about that."

A flash of guilt about blackmailing Keith into something like this hit him, but...Lance had to admit that it looked like his best option. Plus, with his red belt exam coming up, spending more time with Keith and fitting in some extra training couldn't be a bad thing. Maybe...maybe it would be ok. A little strange but, Lance had done stranger things.

"I hate to admit it but...that does sound better than one of my mum's lectures." Standing up, he looked at both of them in turn before walking towards Keith. "Ah, what the heck."

With his back turned, he didn't see the little high five Hunk and Pidge gave each other. Keith looked up from his phone in surprise when Lance crouched beside him. He always preferred to be alone during breaks...or well, any time really. It baffled Lance, who got lonely easily and needed people around constantly. But it was the way Keith liked it.

"Hi." His voice was pretty forced, and Keith squinted at him, trying to work out what was going on, "Mind if I sit with you for a second?"

"We're about to start...why are you so nervous?" His voice was filled with suspicion (which, considering what he was about to ask, made sense) and for a moment Lance thought about abandoning this plan altogether, but something pushed him to carry on.

"I have a favour to ask. A pretty big favour, actually." After only Keith's raised eyebrow in response, he gulped and continued, "I actually need you to do some...acting. See, recently my mum gets upset that I'm still single- crazy, I know, and-"

"Alright, everyone back into position!" Shiro called, straightening his black belt and beckoning them all over. With a defeated sigh, Lance rose to his feet, but Keith's hand was on his forearm again, tugging him back down.

"Are you asking me what I think you're asking?" He hissed, sounding...he didn't sound angry, Lance wasn't even sure what he sounded, and gulped. Instead of answering, he strolled towards their previous sparring position, making sure he placed a little more distance between them and the others than before. When Shiro gave the signal to start, Keith quickly threw a kick that Lance hardly blocked before it connected with his cheek. "Answer me, Lance."

"What do you think I'm asking?" He was dodging around the subject, and his face was bright red, but this time exercise wasn't the cause. 

"Don't play games with me, Lance! Just tell me!" Lance was pushed back by the kicks Keith was practicing, but pushed back and threw punches getting close to Keith's face. 

"I need a date." He admitted in a low voice to keep the others from hearing, and feeling Keith freeze, "Not a real date! I....just need someone to pretend for a while, so-"

"Why the fuck would you ask me?" Keith blinked in disbelief, but he still wasn't angry, which worried Lance as much as it relieved him, "There are so many options that...the aren't me! What about your friends over there?!"

"But my mum knows them. Imagine how awkward it would be!" Lance pointed out, "She's only heard of you before, back when...well when we trained together I...talked about you sometimes, but...Alright, look Keith, will you do it or not?"

The boy in question hooked his legs behind Lance's and took him down, dusting his hands off then crouching beside him, all with a distant look of his face. Grumbling at the sudden aggression, Lance propped himself onto his elbows and adjusted his outfit where the robe had slipped, only to snap his eyes back to Keith at his next words.

"Alright. I'll do it." ...now that wasn't something even Pidge could have predicted. Sure, he had the blackmail, but while Lance wasn't sure he could have used that against him, he'd at least expected a lot of bargaining if Keith were ever to agree to something like this. He tucked some of his hair behind his ear, looking strangely amused. "I have one condition. We tell people at school. Some girls in Pidge's year-and our year- keep bothering me, I wanted them off my back. Seems like two birds with one stone, huh?"

"....R-right..." Lance nodded uselessly, his blush spreading to his ears, and suddenly wondering what he'd gotten himself into.

"Now get up, blue belt, or you'll never catch up." He scrambled to his feet, and for the next 20 minutes he kicked and blocked and tried to ignore the reality of the deal he'd just made.


	2. Baby steps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where I am COMPLETELY self indulgent and cry over Lance having a cute family, then Keith skips through school with his new bf :)))
> 
> ps- please excuse the random Spanish, I put translations at the end~

"I can't believe you actually did it," Pidge said in awe, their voice a little muffled over the headset (probably the result of chocolate of something equally unhealthy). "Actually no, I can believe that, but I can't believe Keith agreed!"

"I can. Keith's kinda prickly, but he's a decent guy under the prickliness." Hunk's avatar on the screen was shooting mercilessly through aliens, but his voice didn't show it. Lance enjoyed their late-night gaming sessions, but tonight he was distracted. The past couple of days had been uneventful, but tomorrow was Monday, which meant school, which meant...starting this mess.

On top of that, telling his mum the identity of his mystery partner had gone a little too well. Not only had she believed him instantly, but started to gush over the picture Lance pulled up on his phone, and was now insisting that Keith came over to their family dinner next weekend. How was he meant to tell him that not only would he have to meet his mum--who was a handful by herself--but the entire family would probably fuss over him...fuss over them both, together. 

"I'm going to need moral support tomorrow," Lance groaned, absentmindedly swapping weapons to shoot the aliens that appeared on his screen. "Pidge, behind you! But yeah...Keith wanting to tell the whole school he's dating me just to keep a few girls away is beyond stupid. Why do they all love him so much anyway? He's always so grumpy at school."

"Girls like that. It adds to his whole mysterious, bad boy look. Plus, his motorbike helps," Pidge chuckled. "I hate to say it Lance, but I guess you wouldn't know what it's like to be bothered by girls all the time."

Lance huffed in response, putting his focus into their game instead of bothering to reply. It was true that he'd seen the way people flocked around Keith as he arrived at school, and while he couldn't understand why it would be a problem...Keith wasn't nearly as outgoing as he was. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad spending a little more time with him outside taekwondo.

"Mi Tesoro, you need to sleep. You have school tomorrow." He hadn't heard his mum come in, but she greeted him with a playful tap on the head before putting her hands on his shoulders. Hopefully, she hadn't heard too much of their conversation.

"Mamma! I have to go guys, I'll see you tomorrow." He reached to turn the game off as Hunk cheerily said goodnight, merely chuckling at Pidge's grumbles that they were close to getting an achievement. 

"When did you get home?”

“Only a few minutes ago.” At that moment, a small bundle came toddling into the room, laughing as she  
hugged her mother’s leg before holding up her arms to Lance, who gladly scooped her up and went to sit at the end of his bed.  
“Lucia! Why are you awake?!”  
“Ah she’s ok, you know she can’t sleep when she misses you.” Lance grinned, bouncing his little sister on his lap. His mum worked long hours sometimes, and with his brother and sister studying abroad he often found himself picking up the slack. Not that he minded, in fact he took his duties as big brother quite seriously, and had always been close to his younger siblings because of it.

"I'll put her to bed." Lance offered, but his mum shook her head with a smile, taking Lucia's hand. Leaning over to kiss his forehead tenderly, she walked away, turning at the door.

“You know, I couldn’t do all this without your help. Como tú no hay nadie, Lance…sleep well, Mijo.”

“Te quiero, Mamma.” When she closed the door, Lance cracked his neck and lay down, but he didn’t sleep for a long time.

 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

When Lance got near the school gates and saw Keith waiting for him, he had to admit that it was easy to see why he got so much attention. He still had his leather jacket and motorbike helmet on with the visor up and the straps undone, and was concentrating on his phone screen while a few younger girls giggled at him a safe distance away.

Out of Keith's mouth was a cigarette that had a few drags left in it, but as soon as he saw him approaching he ground it out on the wall he leaned against and made his way over. Lance raised his eyebrow pointedly at the butt on the floor. "I didn't know you smoked."

"There's a lot you don't know about me." He growled, clearly on edge, before sighing. "...Sorry. Let's call it a stress habit. Where are your friends?"  
Lance shrugged, and tried not to look shocked when Keith casually took his hand and locked their fingers together. The girls watching them whispered more fiercely than before. Honestly, he had a suspicion Hunk and Pidge had been early on purpose today, knowing he usually lagged behind, in order to miss this (or maybe just to laugh from the sidelines...damn traitors).

"Looks like you're blushing there." Lance chuckled, earning a glare. "Not having second thoughts already, are you?"

"I never actually...thought about this before I agreed. It's a bad habit of mine." Keith grimaced, and with a squeeze of his hand, Lance stopped and spoke quietly.

"You know, Keith, if you don't want to do this, now's your chance to tell me. Because in a few minutes, it's going to be too late to take any of this back." In response, Keith only sighed then started marching towards the hall faster than before, dragging Lance behind him. Seriously, what was his problem? At least he didn’t seem unsure anymore, and Lance gulped as he saw the looks they attracted throughout the courtyard.

They weren’t usually seen together, and sure they were holding hands, but was it really such a big deal? They carried on, with Lance stumbling to keep up, until they got to the door of the hall. Eyes burnt into his back when they stopped abruptly, but only when he opened his mouth to ask what in the heck Keith was doing did he see the curious smile on Keith’s face. 

By then, he was already being pulled forward into a kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!! Thank you so much for all the support this fic has gotten, I honestly didn't expect much and it makes me so happy~ idk if you can tell but family man Lance makes me emo I'm not even sorry, but I'll be updating again soon, thanks for reading ^__^ & Thank you Kat for proofreading, you're the best <3
> 
> My bad google translate Spanish that my cute friend @solangelato helped check is as follows:  
> Mi Tesoro- My Treasure  
> Como tú no hay nadie - There is no one else like you  
> Mijo- Sonny (term of endearment)  
> Te quiero- I like/love you

**Author's Note:**

> *SWEATS* THIS IS MY FIRST VOLTRON WRITING THAT'S NOT A SMOL ONE SHOT so I hope it was ok (I know I write Keith too soft I fucking suck at writing edge lords) & uh feedback makes my day tbh so, if you could lmk what you think I'd be <333


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